Ben Carson: Jesus Christ Is Greatest Christmas Gift and Hope
GOP presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson has posted a message to supporters reflecting on the Christmas season, and shared that for him, the greatest gift and the greatest hope is found in Jesus Christ.
"During this season, I always try to remind myself of the greatest gift … our Savior Jesus Christ," Carson said in a Facebook message, responding to a question asking "what is one of your favorite things about Christmas?"
"I know that many of us spend the week leading up to Christmas frantically rushing around buying presents, our time occupied with 'how much to spend' on loved ones, rather than spending much time occupied with those loved ones. It's about relationship, not retail. We should remind ourselves of that more often," he added.
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Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, urged people to focus on pursuing everlasting things, rather than being distracted by the world.
"It is good news, in pursuit of others as we share with those we encounter. Just as we are now, you and I, sitting here together sharing this moment in time, these are the moments that do not fade or wither upon snow's first falling this is the season to be joyous with one another, lift others as He has lifted you, our hands united in hope," Carson added.
"That is why Christmas is special to me — I am reminded of the greatest of gifts every time I see my children and grandchildren's faces. Hope."
Carson, who is a Seventh-day Adventist, has spoken about his faith on a number of occasions in the past. In an interview earlier in December with The Washington Post he said that his denomination believes in "the entirety of the Bible," but he does not support some Evangelical positions, such as the belief in Hell as a physical place, or the coming rapture.
"I don't believe there is a physical place where people go and are tormented, no I don't believe that," Carson said, though he insisted that Heaven is indeed a real physical place where God resides.
The Republican candidate sometimes posts Bible verses on his popular Facebook page, and late on Tuesday night shared with supporters Matthew 1:20-21, the passage where an angel tells Joseph that Mary is pregnant with a son to be named Jesus, asking him to take her as his wife.
On the political side, Carson has been critical of GOP leadership in the face of the recently agreed to $1.1 trillion spending bill, which fully funds Planned Parenthood and allows more refugees to come into America.
"I am angry but no longer shocked. Some of my colleagues running for President talk a big game. They give angry speeches but when the votes were counted none of them even tried to stop this deal. They take their special interest money, collect their paychecks and pensions and give us only rhetoric," Carson said about the Omnibus Appropriations Act, which was signed by President Barack Obama last week after passing both the House and the Senate.
